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Touch Screen technology

Touch Screen
• A touchscreen is a display which
can detect the presence and location
of a touch within the display area.

• The term generally refers to touch or contact to the display of


the device by a finger or hand.
Ex: Touch Screen monitor
History

• In 1971, the first "touch sensor" was developed by Doctor


Sam Hurst (founder of Elographics).

• This sensor called the "Elograph“ .

• The "Elograph" was not transparent like modern touch


screens; however, it was a significant milestone in touch
screen technology.

• On February 24, 1994, the company officially changed its


name from Elographics to Elo Touch Systems.
Elograph–Electronic Graphing Device
Touch Screen Technology

• A basic touchscreen has three main components:

▫ Touch sensor
▫ Controller
▫ Software driver.
1.Touch Sensor
• A touch screen sensor is a clear glass panel with a touch responsive
surface.

• The sensor generally has an electrical current or signal going


through it and touching the screen causes a voltage or signal
change.

• This voltage change is used to determine the location of the touch to


the screen.
2.Controller

• The controller is a small PC card that connects between the


touch sensor and the PC.

• It takes information from the touch sensor and translates it into


information that PC can understand.
3.Software Driver
• The driver is a software update for the PC system that allows
the touchscreen and computer to work together.

• It tells the computer's operating system how to interpret the


touch event information that is sent from the controller.
Types of Technologies

• There are three basic systems that are used to recognize a


person's touch:

Resistive
Capacitive
Surface acoustic wave
Resistive Touch Screen technology

• The resistive system consists of a normal glass panel that is


covered with a conductive and a resistive metallic layer.

• These two layers are held apart by spacers.

• An electrical current runs through the two layers while the


monitor is operational.
Continue…
• The change in the electrical field is noted and the coordinates
of the point of contact are calculated by the computer.

• Once the coordinates are known, a special driver translates


the touch into something that the Operating System.
Capacitive Touch Screen Technology
Surface acoustic wave Touch Screen
Technology
Comparing Touch Screen
Technologies
• A resistive system registers a touch as long as the two layers
make contact, which means that it doesn't matter if you touch
it with your finger or a rubber ball.

• A capacitive system, on the other hand, must have a


conductive input, usually your finger, in order to register a
touch.

• The surface acoustic wave system works much like the


resistive system, allowing a touch with almost any object --
except hard and small objects like a pen tip.
Building Touch Screens
• The key goals are to recognize one or more fingers touching a
display, to interpret the command that this represents, and to
communicate the command to the appropriate application.
The Latest in Touch-Screen Technology

NextWindow Optical Touch Screens

• NextWindow is an international leader in the development of


optical multi-touch technology and the manufacture of optical
multi-touch screens, overlays and OEM touch components.
Multi-Touch
• Multi-touch denotes a set of interaction techniques which allow
computer users to control graphical applications with several
fingers.
• Multi-touch consists of a touch screen or touchpad, as well as
software that recognizes multiple simultaneous touch points.
What's Next for Computer Interfaces?
• Touch tricks for small and large displays could be the next big
thing.

• Tiny touch:
A device called nanoTouch has a touch-sensitive back to make
it easier to view the front-side display. Here, a credit-card-size
gadget shows an image of a person’s finger on the back to help
him move a cursor around the screen.
Touch-Screen Technologies
Palm Pre
• The struggling smart phone vendor is betting the Pre will help
lead it back to glory.
• Like the iPhone, Pre's interface
can be controlled through
gestures made on the gizmo's
touch-sensitive screen.
Windows 7

• The next version of Windows, Windows 7, will boast


support for touch-screen interfaces.
iPhone

• Apple's iPhone kicked off the latest touch-screen fad.


Microsoft Surface
• Microsoft Surface was the star of the Consumer Electronics
Show in 2008.
Touch screens have become common on ATMs and kiosk machines.

ATMs
• Touch screens have become common on ATMs and kiosk
machines.
Samsung P3

Samsung P3
• Unlike the iPod or iPhone, however, Samsung uses haptic
feedback to give a user a little reassuring vibration whenever a
menu item is selected.
LG's Watch Phone

• LG's Touch Watch Phone with touch-screen interface .


Coke machines

• Samsung's interactive uVend machine has a touch screen


display to let users pick out a refreshing beverage.
What Are Touchscreens Used For?
• Public Information Displays

• Retail and Restaurant Systems

• Customer Self-Service

• Control and Automation Systems

• Computer Based Training

• And many more uses...


Pros and Cons of Touchscreens
Touchscreen Pros

• Direct

• Fast

• Finger is usable, any pen is usable (usually no cable needed).

• No keyboard necessary for applications that need menu


selections only -> saves desk space

• Suited to: novices, applications for information retrieval,


high-use environments.
Touchscreen Cons

• Low precision (finger)

• Sitting/Standing

• Dirt

• Screen coverage

• Fatigue

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